ICE unlikely here

Published 8:00 pm, Sunday, March 9, 2008

By BEN LEVINE

blevine@thestamfordtimes.com

STAMFORD -- With Danbury's recent approval to allow police to enforce federal immigration laws, local advocacy groups have begun to ban together in an effort to inform Stamford's immigrant population about their rights, and offer resources of assistance.

"I think that what (Danbury) is doing is terrible. I think it's unfair," said Carolina Osorio, public relations officer for the Hispanic Advisory Council of Greater Stamford.

Osorio is also a member of the Southwestern Connecticut Action Group, a recently formed organization dedicated to working for the rights of undocumented immigrants in southwestern Connecticut. She believes the recent events in Danbury are rooted in a lack of education and misconceptions about undocumented immigrants.

"There is still a lot of prejudice surrounding the immigrant population, and many still have the wrong ideas about them," Osorio said. "They are not taking away jobs and state assistance. They are here to work; they are here to support the state's economy."

Danbury is the first city in the state to participate in the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) program. ICE has close to 40 programs throughout the country and has trained more than 630 officers.

The training of Stamford police to enforce federal immigration laws is not something that the city's police department is considering at the present time, according to Lt. Sean Cooney, a police spokesman.

"We do have a sizable immigrant population here in Stamford, and I'm sure we have our share of illegal immigrants like any other city," Cooney said. "Any consideration for training of our officers would be a political one."

Paul Streitz, who is part of the CT Citizens for Immigration Control (CTCIC), believes the measures taken in Danbury are a good thing for Connecticut, and he would like to see Stamford take similar steps.

"It makes the removal of illegal aliens with criminal records or who are subject to deportation orders easier (to pursue)," Streitz said. "But, there is not really any solution to removing illegal aliens that have not committed crimes. (CTCIC) has always recommended attrition through enforcement of employment laws. When the jobs dry up, the illegals will go home."

Streitz said Stamford does not have as much a problem with undocumented immigrants as Danbury, and said many who work in the city live in Port Chester. Streitz believes there are three negatives to undocumented immigration and massive legal immigration: ecological/demographic, economic, and political.

"They strain the ability of society to sustain population growth. Illegal immigration is basically a criminal racket run by employers and landlords to profit off low-wage illegals," Streitz said. " In the southwest, Mexican illegals are demanding (southwestern) states be returned to Mexico under their demographic invasion called Reconquista. They believe these states are part of a greater Mexico called Aztlan. When the illegals fly the Mexican flag, they mean it."

Streitz's sentiment is one many Americans share, but one that Osorio believes is misguided. She said when undocumented immigrants march, or wave their country's flag, they are not doing so in an attempt to make America more Latino, but rather, for their personal dignity.

"Undocumented immigrants, and immigrants in general deserve to be looked at as people, with rights, not just as an alien," Osorio said. "We're calling on community immigrants to join our new initiative so they know their rights; we want them to know there are available resources to support them."

The Southwestern Connecticut Action Group is holding a meeting on Feb. 21, at the Yerwood Center in Stamford at 6 p.m..

According to U.S. Census Bureau's 2006 Community Survey, 19.7 percent of the city's population is Hispanic or Latino -- compared to 14.8 percent nationwide. Osorio said that in 2006, several ICE raids took place in Stamford, putting the city's immigration community into state of fear, and she does not believe it would be beneficial for the city to train officers.

"Stamford is such a diverse community and there is a large undocumented community. It's so diverse in Stamford that if (police officers were trained to enforce federal immigration laws) I believe it would become a ghost town," Osorio said. "(Undocumented immigrants) are here to make the country better."